Rival Sebastian Vettel won the race after an ill-advised pitstop from HamiltonCredit: EPA

Hamilton paid the price for his early pitstop at Melbourne’s Albert Park — a decision made between himself and the team on the pitwall.

The three-time world champion, 32, who came into the debrief room eating a pear, said: “We had a really good start, which is fantastic, but after that I was struggling with the grip.

“Sebastian was able to always answer in terms of lap time — and the majority of the time do faster lap times. Then, towards the end, I got in a bit of traffic and the car started to overheat the tyres and I was struggling.

“I was sliding around so it was my call to pit because otherwise he probably would have come by anyway.

“Then I came in and obviously got stuck in traffic, which is unfortunate but that’s motor racing.”

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The British driver reacts after coming second in MelbourneCredit: EPA

Hamilton’s fears that this season’s new rules would threaten to disrupt his team’s strangle-hold on the sport appear to have been well founded.

Last year, Mercedes won 19 of the 21 grands prix, taking their tally to 51 wins in 59 races in this hybrid-turbo era.

RETURN OF THE MAC

CRI$TIANO

But you get the feeling things are not going to be such a cakewalk this time around after Vettel’s win Down Under.

The German, looking to become only the third man — after seven-time champ Michael Schumacher and Argentine legend Juan Manuel Fangio — to lift the title five times, said: “What this team has done in the last six months has been really tough, rough as well, not easy to manage.

“So it is fantastic, a big reward, a big relief for everyone. And it’s just the tip of the iceberg.

“The foundation has been laid a long time ago and I’m really proud to see it coming together.”

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Vettel leads the packCredit: EPA

Vettel’s key call was to push through to lap 23 on his first set of tyres while Hamilton stopped on lap 17.

It was a strategy that worked in the German’s favour as he was able to capitalise on Hamilton being caught in traffic.

Vettel added: “We realised early on we had decent pace and I knew if there was anything to happen around the first stop, then I needed to be right behind him.

“Once it was clear that he went in, there was no point following. We stayed out, the tyres were still holding on and the pace looked all right.

“I just tried to calm down a bit and hope for an ‘overcut’. And then obviously we saw the gap, went into the pits and it worked.

“The car was really good, working well and I could control the gap and the pace, going through traffic and just bringing it home. It was very pleasant.”

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The German jumps for joy on the top step of the podiumCredit: Getty Images